Spirit Beasts

Kenji'a sword, black as midnight, hummed with restrained wrath. Along it's spine, faint runes pulsed. His fingers tightened around the hilt, sparks of fire scattered forth from the sword, "It is not real. It is all an illusion." Kenji kept muttering to himself repeatedly.

Kenji's black blade sliced through the resentful mist in a single arc. The mist were pushed forth. The river howled, a monstrous wave of mist surged towards him. The Ghost Emperor swayed his axe towards the mist. The guards following the formation of the Emperor.

With all their energy, they pushed the wave backwards, refraining it from swallowing them, they're energy carrying a hint of weakness as the illusion took over them.

"It is not real…it is not real…." Kenji muttered and in a swift motion he moved hand sending thousands of fireflies, a trail of sparks hissed like thunder, "Move. Move. We will have to move forward and cross the river quickly." Kenji instructed as the fireflies collectively held the mist and clashed with it to clear the path.

"Keep moving your swords, keep fighting as you move." Ghost Emperor instructed as he saw one of his guards get swallowed by the mist upon proceeding. "Lay out seal talismans even if they fade, it's effect will buy you time." Kenji instructed as he swayed his hand in a swift motion, laying out a golden talisman, which pushed forth the wave of mist for sometime. The blade sparked, clashing with the wave.

The Ghost Emperor and Kenji along with the guards pushing the waves backward,their weapons clashing, they moved forward, struggling to pass the river, but somehow…..with a cry, the waves seemed to stop. They had crossed the river. The ground quaked for a moment. The river stilled. The guards stood in formation. Kenji flicked his sword and it wrapped around his finger in the form of a small ring made out of strands of hair.

"I believe it is not over….we have to be ready to face anything.." Kenji said.

"You are right." The Ghost Emperor agreed.

They moved forward, "Are we sure that Li Mei is here?" The ghost emperor asked.

"I am very sure." Kenji answered.

"Li Mei." Kenji screamed as they moved forward. "Keep trying to detect her energy." Kenji said.

"Li Mei." They all screamed trying to find her.

"It's here." The Ghost Emperor sensed.

"Yes….they're radiating from beneath the fractured qi veins….barely….."

"Let's follow it." The Ghost Emperor, without hesitation moves forward, the axe in his hand glistening dreadfully.

They moved swiftly—Kenji at the front, the ghost emperor gliding just behind, his long robes whispering like fog across water. The guards fanned out,each holding glowing talismans that flickered violently as if reacting to something unseen.

Suddenly the ground beneath them cracked.

A mournful scream pierced the air—not Li Mei's but something older and angrier.

A monstrous specter rose from the air, half mist, half bones—a guardian wraith left behind from ancient war. It's arms stretched towards them like many branches of a dead tree, each one dripping with cursed qi.

Kenji lifted his sword,cleaving through the specter.

"Use the seal." The emperor commanded.

Kenji and the Ghost Emperor raised their palms, channelling the ancient runes of binding, a seal burst forth. The specter shrieked, trying to retreat, but the seal had already caught it.

Chains of energy—some spectral,some blazing—lashed out, it wrapped around the wraith and dragged it mid air. The specter flailed it's limb but the seal grew tighter as the guards joined in.

The seal burned itself into the air with a blinding flash. Screams echoed, "HOLD IT!" Kenji shouted,pouring more of his qi into the formation. His blade glowed and stabbed into the centre of the seal,anchoring the final glyph.

The Ghost Emperor drew a talisman from his palm and pressed it to the circle's edge.

With a cry, the specter was pulled inwards—it's form shattered under the ground.

For a moment, no one moved.

The silence after the sealing did not last. Beneath their feet, the earth quivered not from specters remnant but from something else. A sudden tremor of dread seized the Ghost Emperor's immortal spine.

"She's close," he said, voice low and hoarse.

"But this place,it does not want her to be found."

Kenji took a step forward, but the air thickened like syrup,each breath dragging through unseen resistance. A surge of energy lashed out from the ground, cracking through the soil like lightning. It struck Kenji across the chest throwing him back with such a force that his sword slipped from his grip, clattering to the earth beside him. He surged in defense but his energy had been laced with venomous qi—ancient and energy ripping. It latched onto his energy like claws, shredding layers of his spiritual core.

Kenji coughed, the veil covering his lower face wet with injured qi flowing out of his mouth.

"A barrier!" He growled, forcing himself upright. "Not just a prison but a tomb.."

The ghost emperor helped him get up, the guards surrounding them in defense.

Kenji gritted his teeth, "Tear it down.." Kenji instructed the guards.

They moved together, deeper into the underground path that opened before them—an old catacomb, lined with bones.

Kenji could barely walk straight; the curropted qi gnawed at his meridians, disrupting his circulation and dulling the blade's glow. Every step was fire through his veins. He nearly collapsed once barely catching himself on a jagged altar carved with the names of the dead.

"Move don't stop!" Kenji forced an instruction out of himself.

The Ghost Emperor supported him through his arm.

Ahead, the path splintered into mirrored hallways, illusions designed to confuse even the divine sight. The Ghost Emperor marked the real path with a drop of ghostly qi, and they pressed on, surrounded by wailing shadows mimicking Li Mei's voice.

At last, after what felt like days of fighting madness itself, they reached the chamber: a crystal coffin buried in roots of iron, hovering in a pit of cursed water. Li Mei floated inside, her hair drifting like silk, eyes closed, body glowing faintly with sealed light.

But surrounding her were guardians—not specters, corrupted spirit beasts bound to her pain. One turned, it's eyes glowing molten gold, and lunged.

The spirit beast's roar echoed like war drum,it descended upon Kenji and the Emperor with fury that shook the chamber, each claw dripping with cursed essence, the movement was a blur of wrath. Kenji barely had time to raise his hand. His black blade leapt like an old friend answering his call when summoned in desperation.

Their clash was like thunder clashing into fire. Kenji parried the first strike, but the second came lower,slicing across his lower chest. He grunted, spun, and drove his sword upward, embedding it deep into the beast's shoulder. Sparks erupted from the dark blade.

The creature shrieked, not in pain—but in rage. Kenji's spiritual energy flickered, dimming, weakening. The corruption within him pulsed like a second heartbeat. His limbs trembled. The sword fell from his grasp. The Ghost Emperor unable to move ahead and help Kenji as the specter attacked him, the guard's weapons clashed with other beasts.

The beast charged again.

Kenji reached within—past the torn channels of his qi, past the agonising pain, into the last flickering ember of his soul. He called upon his forbidden technique. His body ignited, black fire licking across his limbs and down his blade as he caught it mid-leap.

Kenji struck the beast's chest—once, twice, and a third time through the heart.

The flames exploded outward, consuming the spirit beast in a storm of fire and light. It screamed as it was unravelled, it's corrupted soul finally released. Kenji dropped to his knee, vision blurring. The Ghost Emperor and the guards rushed as the spirit beasts collapsed.

"Rescue….rescue your daughter." Kenji muttered.

The Ghost Emperor moved quickly, stepping over the scorched bones of the beasts. He thrust both of his palms forward, summoning the talisman etched with ghostly script. The coffin above Li Mei shattered in a storm of light, and she fell, unconscious but whole.

Kenji was barely holding on. He slumped forward, chest heaving, his blade still glowing faintly beside him.